Island of Sylt 2023

Coastal protection on the island of Sylt

The coast of the Island Sylt is subject to severe erosion due to the rough weather in the North Sea. As a result, a lot of work is needed to protect the beaches and coastline of the west coast. To help mitigate this erosion, Rohde Nielsen has been awarded a multi-year contract from 2021 to 2024 by LKN for the Coastal Protection on different locations on the coast of the Island Sylt in Schleswig-Holstein.

The annual coastal protection on the island of Sylt in 2023 was the 22nd season in a row. This season a total of 1.111.111 m³ was dredged by stationary dredging from April to October using several hoppers from our fleet.

The majority of this year’s volume, around 875.000m³, was pumped to the various beaches via sinker lines.

This season, between 110.000 and 200.000m³ of sand was needed at five locations to protect the dunes. The remaining 250.000m3 was dumped at a site in Westerland (in the center of the island) on the fore shore between -4.0 and -5.5m.

A special note on this sand replenishment:  In general, we can see that the Client is increasingly taking sand from the coastal areas rather than pumping it onto the beach. Long-term studies have shown that it doesn’t matter where the sand is pumped or dumped, as long as it gets into the island’s ‘system’. Nature does the rest. Although this year the balance between pumping and dumping is clearly in favour of pumping due to some local weather events on the beach, which have washed away some of the popular, busy beaches.

This year all the work was carried out by the following vessels: Idun R started the work, Thor R and Embla R followed for pumping. From mid-July, Sif R started dumping and continued until mid-October.

The largest of the North Frisian Islands is a popular destination among foodies and water sports fans. Located just off Schleswig-Holstein’s North Sea coast, Sylt has plenty to offer holidaymakers with wellness on their mind. When you picture Sylt, imagine some 40 km of sandy beaches to the west, the vast Wadden Sea to the east and vibrant spa resorts, such as Westerland and Wenningstedt, boasting no end to wellness treatments. This ‘Queen of the North Sea’ in the Schleswig-Holstein Wadden Sea National Park covers 99 square km, making it Germany’s fourth largest island.

The protection of the Sylt coast is therefore of vital importance and, by carrying out these projects, Rohde Nielsen is undoubtedly taking positive action on all three fundamental ESG pillars – Environment, Social and Governance.

  • Location: Sylt (GER)
  • Scope: 1,111,111 m3
  • Client: Landesbetrieb für Küstenschutz, Nationalpark und Meeresschutz (LKN)
  • Year: 2023

The fleet that made it possible

  • Embla R
  • Thor R
  • Sif R
  • Idun R
  • Loke R
  • Vidar R
Hopper capacity
2,700m3
Length overall
85.40m
Breadth
17.40m
Draught loaded
5.40m
Draught unloaded
2.90m
Dredging depth
32.00/52.00m
Hopper capacity
2,507m3
Length overall
83.90m
Breadth
14.00m
Draught loaded
5.41m
Draught unloaded
3.47m
Dredging depth
25.00/28.00m
Hopper capacity
2,173m3
Length overall
80.00m
Breadth
13.80m
Draught loaded
4.87m
Draught unloaded
2.90m
Dredging depth
24.00/46.50m
Hopper capacity
2,035m3
Length overall
79.00m
Breadth
14.00m
Draught loaded
4.50m
Draught unloaded
3.45m
Dredging depth
25.00/28.00m
Length overall
22.15m
Breadth
6.80m
Draught
3.42m
Main engine
2x448kW
Speed
10.5kn
Length overall
15.25m
Breadth
4.65m
Draught
2.00
Main engine
447kW
Speed
9.0kn

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